Notable Christians: Alan Redpath

This is another great man of God we should know about:

The famous British preacher, evangelist, author and teacher had a huge impact on both sides of the Atlantic. His many books and sermons are still widely available, and he has been a tremendous help to millions of believers worldwide. Some of the books and quotes I mention below will give you a real feel for the man and his ministry.

But let me mention just one episode from his life. In 1964 he had suffered a stroke which was nearly fatal. Although he recovered from it, it left him in deep depression for some time afterwards. At one point later on he wrote of having quite wicked thoughts. He had even prayed, “O Lord, deliver me from this attack of the devil. Take me right home!”

During this time he felt the Lord saying to him: “It is I, your Savior, who has brought this experience into your life to show you [that] this is the kind of person—with all your sinful thoughts and temptations, which you thought were things of the past—that you always will be, but for My grace.”

It is interesting how so many of God’s choice servants have had to battle things like depression and despair, all the while being such a blessing to so many all along. Charles Spurgeon is of course another such figure. You never know how God might use you, even though you may think you are quite unusable.

Timeline

1907, January 9 Born in Newcastle upon Tyne
1936 Joins the Young Life/National Young Life Campaign as an evangelist
1940 Becomes pastor of Duke Street Baptist Church in Richmond, London
1953 Moves to Chicago to become the pastor of the Moody Church
1962 Returns to the UK and 1962 becomes pastor of Charlotte Baptist Chapel in Edinburgh
1969 Becomes Field Representative for Capernwray Missionary Fellowship
1975 Named Pastoral Dean of Capernwray Bible School
1989, March 16 Dies in Birmingham, England

Some of his books

The Bible Speaks To Our Times (Oliphants, 1965)

Blessings Out of Buffetings (Pickering & Inglis, 1965, 1978)

Captivity to Conquest (First published as Faith for the Times) (Pickering & Inglis, 1972, 1978)

Law and Liberty (Pickering & Inglis, 1978)

The Making of a Man of God: Studies in the life of David (Marshall Pickering, 1962, 1972)

Victorious Christian Living (Pickering & Inglis, 1955, 1977)

Victorious Christian Service (Pickering & Inglis, 1958, 1976)

Victorious Praying (Pickering & Inglis, 1956)

And a number of his sermons can be listened to here: https://www.sermonindex.net/modules/mydownloads/viewcat.php?cid=26

Quotes

“We are prepared to serve the Lord only by sacrifice. We are fit for the work of God only when we have wept over it, prayed about it, and then are enabled by Him to tackle the job that needs to be done. May God give to us hearts that bleed, eyes that are wide open to see, minds that are clear to interpret God’s purposes, wills that are obedient, and a determination that is utterly unflinching as we set about the tasks He would have us do.”

“When God wants to do an impossible task He takes an impossible man and crushes him.”

“The Bible NEVER flatters its heroes. It tells us the truth about each one of them in order that against the background of human breakdown and failure we may magnify the grace of God and recognize that it is the delight of the Spirit of God to work upon the platform of human impossibilities.”

“There’s some task which the God of all the universe, the great Creator, your redeemer in Jesus Christ has for you to do, and which will remain undone and incomplete until by faith and obedience you step into the will of God.”

“The best place any Christian can ever be in is to be totally destitute and totally dependent upon God, and know it.”

“Half a dozen men on their knees for 60 minutes waiting upon the Lord with the absolute conviction that they have no answer, that their human ideas and programs are ineffective and bankrupt—they will accomplish more than 50 men around a table discussing problems for a whole year.”

“God expects nothing from Alan Redpath but failure. I as a man am no different today from the day before I was converted. Five minutes after I’ve finished preaching I would be capable of committing any sin imaginable but for the grace of God. Alan Redpath is no different as a man from what he was as a youngster. And the sins that beset him then beset him now, were it not for a constant, continual dependence upon the blood of Jesus, and the grace of God, and the power of the Holy Spirit to keep me.”

“There is no revival possible in any fellowship without a price being paid.”

“Before we can pray, ‘Lord, Thy Kingdom come,’ we must be willing to pray, ‘My Kingdom go’.”

“We will only advance in our evangelistic work as fast and as far as we advance on our knees. Prayer opens the channel between a soul and God; prayerlessness closes it. Prayer releases the grip of Satan’s power; prayerlessness increases it. That is why prayer is so exhausting and so vital. If we believed it, the prayer meeting would be as full as the church.”

“No sin which we are capable of committing has ever taken God by surprise for He knew we were just like that.”

“You are never used of God to bring blessing until God has opened your eyes and made you see things as they are.”

The conversion of a soul is the miracle of a moment, but the manufacture of a saint is the task of a lifetime.”

“There is nothing – no circumstance, no trouble, no testing – that can ever touch me until, first of all, it has gone past God and past Christ right through to me. If it has come that far, it has come with a great purpose, which I may not understand at the moment. But as I refuse to become panicky, as I lift up my eyes to Him and accept it as coming from the throne of God for some great purpose of blessing to my own heart, no sorrow will ever disturb me, no trial will ever disarm me, no circumstance will cause me to fret – for I shall rest in the joy of what my Lord is! That is the rest of victory!”

“Faith is two empty hands held open to receive all of the Lord.”

“The Christian life doesn’t get easier as one gets older.”

“God will never plant the seed of his life upon the soil of a hard, unbroken spirit. He will only plant that seed where the conviction of his spirit has brought brokenness, where the soil has been watered with the tears of repentance as well as the tears of joy.”

“The whole trouble with many Christians today is that they are only playing at being Christian. They have never really gone in for a holy, dynamic Christian life, because they are afraid to pay the price.”

“Our God has one great and burning passion upon His heart. It is to find a man here, another there, a girl here, another there, and so fill them with His Holy Spirit that they may become channels through whom He can do what He plans to do.”

“God doesn’t want new methods; He wants new men.”

[1235 words]

3 Replies to “Notable Christians: Alan Redpath”

  1. Notice his struggles were all in his mind and spirit (given by God) as he works on sorting out what comes from the Holy Spirit, as opposed to his rebellious spirit or other ‘ principalities or powers.”
    Our minds, from which we have the ability to reason to the truth are our most important asset. But…we and others are not left always seeking what God wills, for His will is in His Commandments.
    These are on every page of the Bible: literally, metaphorically, through stories and parables, actions by godly men, and veiled in massive amounts of symbolism that can be understood….by them is your servant warned; in keeping them is great reward.

  2. Thanks Bill. Oh boy! So much good stuff in this article and so true. Love especially:

    “…first of all, it has gone past God and past Christ right through to me”

    “And the sins that beset him then beset him now, were it not for a constant, continual dependence upon the blood of Jesus, and the grace of God, and the power of the Holy Spirit to keep me.”

    I’ll be adding Redpath to my list of great men to listen to today.
    Bless you!

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